The Malaysian government wants in on the TPP, but that couldn’t happen unless the U.S. upgraded its rating on the country’s human rights record. So the State Department under President Barack Obama, who really wants the TPP to happen before he leaves office, changed Malaysia’s ranking as a human trafficking violator from Tier 3 to Tier 2.

The change angered activists and human rights organizations who say Malaysian officials have done little to stop sex slavery and forced labor, particularly in the electronics industry. Mass graves holding more than 130 human trafficking victims were discovered in April near the Malaysian-Thailand border. And yet, only three months later, Malaysia’s human rights record has substantially improved, according to the State Department.

“The Administration has turned its back on the victims of trafficking,” Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) said in a written statement. “They have elevated politics over the most basic principles of human rights.”

TPP talks also have stirred concerns over pharmaceuticals, with the Obama administration attempting to maintain patent protection for 12 years for U.S. drug companies. Drug companies say they need that long to recoup their investment in research and development before a generic version is allowed on the market.

Australia is adamantly sticking with a maximum of five years’ protection. Since that country’s health service pays for its citizens’ medications, it wants to see prices drop as quickly as possible. Developing nations also want lower drug prices. According to The New York Times’ Jonathan Weisman, the U.S. position may be softening and the final number could end up between five and seven years.